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Exclusive: Emami set to acquire 100% stake in The Man Company

EntrackrEntrackr · 11m ago
Exclusive: Emami set to acquire 100% stake in The Man Company
Medial

Fast moving consumer goods company Emami is set to acquire 100% stake in men’s grooming brand The Man company, two sources familiar with details told Entrackr. While the group has backed several companies in the direct to consumer segment, this would be the first complete acquisition by the group in the D2C space. “The acquisition was inevitable and a matter of time as Emami already has a controlling stake in The Man Company,” said one of the sources requesting anonymity. “The deal will be worth around Rs 400 crore.” Emami already owned a little over 50% in The Man Company as of July 2022. According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, co-founders Hitesh Dhingra, Parvesh Bareja, and Bhisam Bhateja collectively own around 35% of the company. Emami acquired a 33.09% stake in The Man Company across two tranches which materialized in December 2017 and February 2019. “The discussions are in the final stages, and if nothing goes wrong at the last moment, the transaction will be completed in a few weeks from now,” said the source quoted above. Queries sent to Emami and The Man Company didn’t elicit any immediate response. We will carry their comments in case they do. For the fiscal year ending March 2024, The Man Company posted a revenue of Rs 185 crore. As per the firm, 70% of its revenues came from e-commerce channels, including major marketplaces and its website. It claimed EBITDA level profitability with Rs 14 crore in FY24. It’s worth highlighting that the firm has raised only Rs 75 crore ($9 million) to date. The Gurugram-based firm majorly competes with Beardo which was acquired by Marico in July 2020 in around Rs 350 crore. Beardo is yet to disclose its FY24 numbers but it did more than Rs 100 crore revenue in FY23. Its other peer Ustraa also posted similar revenue in FY23.

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Exclusive: Lenskart set to acquire location AI startup GeoIQ

EntrackrEntrackr · 1m ago
Exclusive: Lenskart set to acquire location AI startup GeoIQ
Medial

Exclusive: Lenskart set to acquire location AI startup GeoIQ Omnichannel eyewear retailer Lenskart is all set to acquire location artificial intelligence startup GeoIQ, sources aware of the development told Entrackr. “The deal is nearing completion, with Lenskart set to acquire a majority stake in GeoIQ,” said a source familiar with the matter. “Most of the existing investors are expected to exit as part of the transaction.” Lenskart, which had previously invested in GeoIQ, spearheaded a $2.25 million funding round in May 2022, joined by 9Unicorns (now 100Unicorns) and Ecosystem Ventures. In November 2020, the startup secured Rs 2.5 crore in funding from investors including 9Unicorns, Inflection Point Ventures (IPV), Kayenne, and LetsVenture, among others. Founded by Devashish Fuloria, Tushneet Shrivastava, and Ankita Thakur, GeoIQ utilizes proprietary algorithms to layer government data with other trusted public sources and satellite imagery into generating 100m x 100m geospatial grids. The startup specializes in providing businesses with actionable consumer insights to tap into offline demand and facilitate faster expansion. It already works with well-known brands like Lenskart, Zepto, Navi, HUL, Caratlane, GIVA, Swiggy, Licious, and CultFit. According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, GeoIQ is currently valued at around Rs 90 crore (over $10 million). Lenskart is the largest stakeholder in the company with a 17.11% stake while all three co-founders hold 16.57% each. For the fiscal year ending in March 2024, GeoIQ reported an operating revenue of Rs 6.7 crore against Rs 7.1 crore in FY23. Its net loss widened to Rs 6.1 crore from Rs 4.2 crore year-on-year. “The terms of the deal have been sealed, with GeoIQ expected to be valued anywhere between $15–20 million,” said the person quoted at the beginning of the story. This marks Lenskart’s second acquisition in the last two years. In October 2023, the Peyush Bansal-led company acquired TangoEye, an AI-driven computer vision startup in which it was already an investor. In June 2022, it bought a majority stake in Japan’s Owndays. Three months later, Lenskart’s subsidiary Neso Brands also acquired a minority stake in Paris-based omnichannel eyewear brand Le Petit Lunetier. The development comes as Lenskart gears up for its initial public offering (IPO) as it aims to raise $1 billion at a valuation of $10 billion. Last week, the company also transitioned its holding entity from a private limited to a public limited company. The move was exclusively reported by Entrackr.

Exclusive: BharatPe increases its stake in Trillion Loans to 60%

EntrackrEntrackr · 11m ago
Exclusive: BharatPe increases its stake in Trillion Loans to 60%
Medial

Fintech unicorn BharatPe has invested around $8-9 million in its non banking financial (NBFC) arm Trillion Loans and increased its stake in the Mumbai-based firm to nearly 60%, two sources told Entrackr. In May 2023, BharatPe acquired a majority 51% stake in Trillion Loans. The Tiger Global-backed firm also appointed Ravindra Pandey, Nalin Negi and Sabyasachi Senapati to the board of the NBFC firm. The investment appears to be a move for instilling confidence among its external stakeholders, including the lending community and equity holders. “Trillion Loans is now valued at $100 million. BharatPe is planning to fully acquire 100% stake in Trillion NBFC by next 24 months,” said a source who requested not to be named. The person added that BharatPe is also pushing very hard to increase its stake in Unity Small Finance Bank to get more control. Currently, BharatPe owns 49% in Unity SFB whereas Centrum Group owns the remaining 51% stake. Earlier this year, BharatPe raised a larger debt round while Trillion Loans closed a separate debt from Credit Saison. Entrackr exclusively reported the development then. “The investment will enable Trillion Loans to pursue new opportunities, leverage its capital, and operate within comfortable regulatory limits,” said another source who also wished not to be named. BharatPe declined to comment on the story. BharatPe raised its last equity round in August 2021. As per media reports, it was in talks to raise a larger equity round. While the equity funding did not materialize, it has raised multiple debts in the past three years. The company is also likely to be profitable on a consolidated basis in the ongoing fiscal year (FY25). BharatPe’s operating revenue reportedly increased by 16% to Rs 1,370 crore in FY24 while its losses shrank 70% to Rs 270 crore in FY24.

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